The Biden administration released a plan on Monday it thinks can help “fast track” the uptake of electric-vehicle use in the U.S. by building 500,000 charging stations across the country.
Vice President Kamala Harris made the announcement at a government facility in Maryland, extending the Biden team’s news last week that it will push for greener energy throughout federal buildings and for its vehicle fleets.
The announcement is part of the $1 trillion infrastructure law Biden signed last month, which authorizes the charging stations and sets aside $5 billion for states, with a goal to build a national charging network. The law also provides an additional $2.5 billion for local grants to support charging stations in rural areas and in disadvantaged communities.
“The auto industry is clearly moving toward electric. We need to make the shift faster and make sure it is driven by the United States. That means manufacturing millions of electric cars, trucks and buses right here in our country,” Harris said.
Right now, the U.S. market share of plug-in EV sales is one-third the size of the Chinese EV market. China is one of the U.S.’s primary rivals on trade, including in the renewable-energy space, as world leaders take steps to slow global warming.
The administration has set an ambitious target of a 50% EV sale share of auto buying in the U.S. by 2030, but fast and reliable charging remains a wrinkle.
“When we ask people what is the biggest barrier so that they’ll buy an electric car, the answer is almost always figuring out where and how to charge,” Harris said.
The new EV-charging strategy establishes a joint EV office between the federal Energy and Transportation departments; issues guidance and standards for states; and ensures consultations with manufacturers, state and local governments, environmental justice and civil rights groups, tribes and others.
The EV-charging move is also part of Biden’s goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, a target largely in line with other major nations.
Republicans have said this focus on EVs is mistimed when Americans are contending with a spike in gasoline RB00, -0.35% and natural gas NG00, -0.05% prices.
Biden last month ordered a record 50 million barrels of oil released from America’s strategic reserve, as a move to soften some of the near-term price jump.
